PROPOSING CITY-RUN SCHOOL SYSTEM
At a recent meeting of the Good2Great Organization, organizer Amy Thompson hoped a voter referendum to let Fairhope citizens decide if they want to form their own school system could be held as early as this September. Thompson said an advisory committee had been meeting for about a month already -- and characterized the effort as a "bottom up, top down process" involving ordianary citizens as well as elected city leaders.
According to information provided, all students currently in the feeder pattern (in or out of city limits) would be included in the new system (grandfathered in) and revenue derived locally resulting from the county's ongoing Yes We Can funding campaign would go to the new city system instead, if its decided to form one.
The group worried about the Baldwin county system's finances and its coming critical need for more revenue: "The economic disaster that's just ahead . . . will make it difficult for (the) Baldwin County system . . . to efficiently manage 27,000+ students without taking drastic measures."
Members pointed out that the current per pupil expenditure for Fairhope students is considerably less than elsewhere in Baldwin County -- and predicted the financial crisis this fall would exacerbate the problem (class sizes of up to 40).
At a recent meeting of the Good2Great Organization, organizer Amy Thompson hoped a voter referendum to let Fairhope citizens decide if they want to form their own school system could be held as early as this September. Thompson said an advisory committee had been meeting for about a month already -- and characterized the effort as a "bottom up, top down process" involving ordianary citizens as well as elected city leaders.
According to information provided, all students currently in the feeder pattern (in or out of city limits) would be included in the new system (grandfathered in) and revenue derived locally resulting from the county's ongoing Yes We Can funding campaign would go to the new city system instead, if its decided to form one.The group worried about the Baldwin county system's finances and its coming critical need for more revenue: "The economic disaster that's just ahead . . . will make it difficult for (the) Baldwin County system . . . to efficiently manage 27,000+ students without taking drastic measures."
Members pointed out that the current per pupil expenditure for Fairhope students is considerably less than elsewhere in Baldwin County -- and predicted the financial crisis this fall would exacerbate the problem (class sizes of up to 40).
Comments
I am still on the fence on this issue, but am in favor of putting all the information out there, having open and honest discussions, and then letting the citizens vote.